


Partners

by bilgegungoren00



Series: Karamel Fanfiction Challenge [2]
Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Roommates/Housemates, F/M, Karamel Fanfiction challenge, Kidnapping, Rescue, Roommates, Superhero Partners, supergirl - Freeform, valor - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-01
Updated: 2017-07-01
Packaged: 2018-11-21 21:55:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 16,511
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11366403
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bilgegungoren00/pseuds/bilgegungoren00
Summary: At that moment she’d appreciated him like she never did before, especially since he had not made fun of it the next day and instead prepared her chocolate chip pancakes. With caramel drizzle. She could’ve literally kissed him right then and there.Or, in which Kara and Mon-El are roommates, but don't know that the other is a superpowered alien, or their superhero partner they've been working with for over a year.Roommate AU (Karamel Fanfiction Challenge Week 2)





	1. Capture

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you like it :)

Kara didn’t know for how long she’d been staring at the laptop screen in front of her with a frown on her face. Her fingers were on the keyboard, ready to write as soon as she thought of something… Yet that was exactly the problem. She couldn’t think of _anything_ to write. The words that normally came out so easily were just stuck in her mind somewhere, refusing the come out. She’d already restarted the article three times, not being able to get out even a sentence. It wasn’t working. It was just _not working._

“Hey.” She momentarily slipped away from her thoughts with the familiar voice. Looking up she saw Mike standing right in front of her, an apron around his waist and a towel in his hand. He lifted his brow when their eyes met. “You okay?” A genuine concern was twinkling in his eyes when Kara returned back to the screen in front of her.

“Yeah,” she said, shaking her head, even though all she wanted was to punch a wall. Though that probably wouldn’t be a good idea…especially if she didn’t want to open a huge hole in the wall. Her hand would make it out of that unscathed, but she couldn’t say the same thing about the wall.

She could also imagine Mike’s reaction to it if he saw her punching through a wall, so she had to leave the punching to later. But that didn’t mean her frustration immediately dissipated. Oh no.

“Yeah, of course, I’m fine.” She couldn’t help wincing when the words came out too harshly, and she forced a smile when she looked up at Mike. “Why wouldn’t I be?” He just shrugged nonchalantly, yet Kara could see his eyes traveling on her face. She tried to ignore the way they lingered on her lips before they found her eyes.

“Oh, I don’t know,” he remarked almost too factually before he threw the towel over his shoulder. “It’s just that you’re crinkling right now.” He pointed at her forehead, making Kara jerk back as instinct took over. She frowned all over again, only to remember that only deepened her crinkle, and forced her face into a neutral expression. Or at least tried to.

“No, I’m not,” she objected, pulling one of her hands on her lap and clenching her fist. A grin appeared on Mike’s face at that.

“Are too,” he said as his eyes flickered to her forehead.

“I’m not crink—“ Kara tried to object, only to have him ignore her and reach up.

“Yeah, look, it’s right…” She reached up and grabbed his wrist before he could touch his forehead, sending him a warning glare. It only widened Mile’s grin as his eyes flickered to hers. “There,” he finished his sentence before he dropped his hand, his gaze still fixed on her, as if waiting for her to speak. Kara narrowed her eyes at him, getting ready to shoot him down by saying she was _totally_ fine and he was making a big deal out of nothing, yet she stopped. What was the point anyway? If she knew Mike Matthews, she knew that he’d find a way to get the truth out of her, _especially_ if he thought she was stressed. He had a way of doing that, just as well as he had a way of figuring out quickly when something was bothering her. He knew her too damn well for her own good.

She guessed that was the consequence of being roommates with him for the last seven months. You got to know someone inside out. Well, as much as you could at least…when one of you was an alien superhero, working for a secret government organization called DEO in order to protect National City from criminals. _That_ was not something you could just go ahead and tell anyone.

“Mike…” Kara whispered, almost exasperatedly as he watched him slip into the seat across from her. She played with her ponytail, adjusting her glasses before she turned to the laptop. Yet Mike… Well, he wasn’t one to give up. His steel-gray eyes focused on her behind his glasses, as if telling her to spill everything and there was no point in resisting.

“Come on,” he said, poking her arm lightly. Well, at least lightly for _her,_ as she assumed it wouldn’t feel that feathery for a human. He poked her arm again before he continued. “Talk to me. Tell me what’s going on.” He attempted to poke her again, at least before Kara swatted his hand away.

“Okay, okay, fine!” she gave up, lifting her hands in the air. With that a huge, triumphant grin appeared on his face, one of those grins that always managed to make her heart flip. He was just so carefree with them all the time, being able to smile in every situation—which was a quality Kara did not possess—that she sometimes felt jealous. Yet most of the time… Most of the time she just stared at him, at how _beautiful_ he looked with his smile, how _good_ it felt inside to see it, and how she could get lost in his eyes—

She stopped that train of thought before it could get far and forced herself to focus on his words instead of…well… _him_. She took a deep breath.

“It’s… It’s Snapper,” she admitted finally, deflating as she desperately stared at the laptop. Understanding filled Mike’s eyes at that as he waited for her to continue. “He’s making me write this…this article on the alien attack yesterday. The one I—I mean, the one Supergirl and Valor stopped.” She quickly tried to pull herself together, hoping Mike didn’t catch her slip. Yet he only seemed to be focused on her face as he nodded, listening intently. “And he wants me to be _objective_ about it. Like… Like talk about the extensive damage in the buildings and the cars the superheroes caused _while they were trying to save civilians.”_ She rolled her eyes as she took her face in her hands, shaking her head. “And I can’t do it! I _tried,_ it’s not like I _didn’t,_ but I can’t paint Supergirl and Valor as not heroes.” She realized she sounded muffled because of her hands in a really unflattering way, yet she couldn’t even care. Still, she lifted her head to shoot a glare at Mike when she heard his low chuckle. He tried to hide it behind his hand, yet there was no mistaking the glint of amusement in his eyes. He cleared his throat before he shrugged.

“Well, then don’t write it,” he suggested, as if it was the easiest thing to do, and leaned over the counter. Kara momentarily got distracted as she looked at his arms, and how his muscles stretched over his plaid shirt…before she forced herself to focus again. She rolled her eyes.

“You’re saying that as if I have a choice,” she complained as she shut her laptop lid. “But you and I both know how Snapper gets when I go against his orders.” The last time that happened, the man had called Kara on her cell and yelled at her for a good fifteen minutes. She must’ve been beet red when she left her bedroom, her grip on the phone almost tight enough to crush it, that Mike had given her ice cream without saying a word. Two boxes of it. At that moment she’d appreciated him like she never did before, especially since he had not made fun of it the next day and instead prepared her chocolate chip pancakes. With caramel drizzle. She could’ve literally kissed him right then and there.

Not that she wanted to kiss him! That was just… That was just an expression. Like what people said when…when someone made something great for them. Besides, it wasn’t as if she could _really_ kiss him if she didn’t want to break his nose or something. As cute and… _hot_ as he was—not that she’d _ever_ admit that out loud—he was still very much human…and she was still very much a superpowered alien. With two jobs. And super strength that could hurt Mike if she let her control slip even for one second. So no, whatever might going on between them, however close they might get, kissing was not an option. It wasn’t even among the choices.

Fortunately Mike chose that exact moment to talk, taking her out of her thoughts before they went ahead of themselves and she did something she shouldn’t have. She shoved all thoughts about Mike’s lips as she tried to focus on his words. “Yeah,” he admitted, his eyes thoughtful, before they turned cheerful. “But maybe this time it will be different. Maybe he’ll actually end up liking it.” Kara snorted when Mike turned around and walked to the stove, burying her head on her arms over the table.

“Yeah, I highly doubt that,” she muttered, earning a laugh from Mike. She couldn’t help smiling at that before she heard a thud on the kitchen island. She lifted her head slightly to see what it was…

And came face to face with one very tasty looking spaghetti…with tomato sauce on top. Just like she liked it. She straightened up, her eyes finding Mike grinning smugly in front of her, and she couldn’t even be angry at him. “Damn you, Mike Matthews,” she complained as she pulled the spaghetti in front of her. “You’re too amazing.” Mike’s grin widened at that as he sat across her, one plate of spaghetti in front of him too, before he shrugged.

“Well, I try,” he said as he grabbed his fork. Kara barely had time to roll her eyes as she dived into her plate, devouring the first bite. And…yeah. It really was amazing. She was truly lucky to have him as her roommate, especially considering all the other candidates that came to her about the ad she’d hung. Mike was… He was just incredible. He was tidy and clean, he didn’t mind doing chores contrary to many men she’d met, he never did anything to make her feel uncomfortable, and of course, he could cook, which was the best part. She’d wanted a roommate to get some of the weight of the house off of her shoulders, so she could focus on CatCo and Supergirl more, and boy had Mike done that. She was just so… _grateful_ for him, in everything. Especially since he also did everything he asked him to without much question, without getting too curious, and instead was just…there for her. That was something that she almost never had in her life, and she liked it. She might’ve even liked it a bit _too_ much.

“But back to the Snapper thingy,” Mike said, taking her out of her thoughts as he gestured at her with the fork, “what can he really do if you did it your way instead of his anyway? Except yelling at you. Worst case scenario, you’ll have to rewrite the article.” Kara shot him an unamused look at that.

“Yeah, you’re not really helping right there,” she said, earning a chuckle from him. She pressed her lips together to keep herself from smiling as he continued, yet she just _knew_ he’d noticed the way the corners of her lips were twitching, and that had made him smile even bigger.

“But best case scenario,” he said, digging his fork into his spaghetti, “he’ll actually like what you wrote, and he’ll publish it. I mean, your writing is pretty badass when you write what you want to write about. Trust me, I’ve read enough of your articles to know that.” Kara stopped with those words for a second as her head snapped up, her brows lifted. She felt her heart skip in her chest.

“You did?” she asked, wanting to smack herself when her voice sounded too hopeful. Mike’s hand froze over his plate as he glanced up at her. Thanks to her supervision, Kara didn’t miss the blush that crept up his cheeks, and somehow…somehow that made him look even cuter. He cleared his throat.

“I mean…” he began explaining with a nervous laughter. “I mean, you are my friend and roommate, so…so I thought it was only fitting, you know? That I… That I read your articles.” He cleared his throat again as he adjusted his glasses, and ducked his chin to stare at his spaghetti. “And you _do_ write pretty well…” A laugh burst out of Kara’s mouth at his embarrassment.

“Well, I’m gonna take that as a compliment,” she said as she shook her head, trying to shut up the part of her mind that was literally screaming at her that Mike read her articles. He _read_ them. Not that… Not that it should come as a big surprise to her, since he’d shown over and over again, ever since he’d been living with Kara, that he paid attention to her a lot more than she thought he did. Like that one day, not even a month ago, after a failed DEO mission she’d come home all grumpy and frustrated, only to find that he had a bubble bath prepared for her, with a bottle of wine and a book on the stool next to the bathtub. It almost made her burst into tears as she asked him how he knew she needed a bath. Mike had just shrugged, telling her that she always took a bath after coming home from a bad day at work. Even _she_ had not realized she’d been doing that until he pointed it out. Of course he didn’t know it wasn’t her job at CatCo that had frustrated her that day… But even the fact that he paid attention to something so small had made her heart melt.

From gratitude, of course. Her heart had melted from _gratitude_. Nothing else.

She shook her head and changed the topic to focus on the issue at hand. “And what you said about writing what I feel like could’ve been true…except if I give him another article that defends Supergirl and Valor, he’s gonna suspect that I have some sort of relation with them.” She adjusted her glasses, hoping she wasn’t being too obvious as she dug into her spaghetti. She felt Mike freeze across from him for a couple of seconds before she continued eating.

“Well,” he asked, slowly, deliberately. Kara looked up at the tension in his voice. “Do you?”

“No!” The word left Kara’s mouth the moment she heard him ask the question, so much so that Mon-El jumped, his eyes widening slightly. She inwardly cursed at herself as she frowned, at least before she remembered her telltale crinkle and tried to put on a blank face. “That’s… That’s ridiculous. Of course not.” She didn’t miss the relieved breath Mike took before she continued with a nervous laughter. “I’m just… I’m just a reporter. How could I know two superheroes anyway, right?” She laughed again, hoping it didn’t sound as fake as she felt it did. Mike laughed with her too as he nodded.

“Yeah,” he said, clearing his throat, before his face turned serious. “But, I mean, that doesn’t mean you can’t stand up for Valor and Supergirl.” He shrugged as a frown appeared on his face, tossing the spaghetti around with his fork before he continued. “They did save a lot of civilians there that day. I don’t know about you, but… If I was one of those people, or their friends, I would be pretty grateful. At least…” He looked up, his gray eyes shining with something like…hope? Confusion? Kara couldn’t really read them, especially as he adjusted his glasses. “At least I think I would be pretty grateful.” Kara felt a smile widen on her face at that, on Mike’s support of…Supergirl, despite not knowing who she was. Of course there were a lot of people that supported what she did as Supergirl on a daily basis, but they knew Supergirl was Kara, and they liked Kara. It wasn’t as if they would go ahead and tell her that Supergirl was wrong. But Mike… He didn’t know she was Supergirl, he had no reason to defend her. And yet, still… He always somehow knew exactly what he needed to hear.

“Yeah,” she whispered, trying to get rid of her thoughts and calm her stuttering heart. She focused on eating her spaghetti instead of looking at Mike, because with his gray eyes trained on him, with that small smile on his face… It was far too easy to get lost in him. “Yeah, you’re right. There might’ve been a lot of damage, but there were no civilian casualties. Which is, whatever Snapper might say, a win in my book.” A huge grin appeared on Mike’s face at that as he nodded, putting his fork aside.

“See, that’s the spirit. Now you go write that shit down instead of whatever Snapper got you to write.” He stood up to put his plate in the sink before he checked the oven, and the cookies he was baking. He’d promised them to Kara that morning, and, well… She’d just made sure he kept it. “And if he gets angry,” he continued as he stood up, “I’ll be ready with tons of ice cream in the fridge. Don’t you worry about that.” Kara smiled at him as she pushed her plate aside, letting Mike put that one in the sink too, before she pulled her laptop in front of her. She saw him, from the corner of her eyes, taking off his apron and walking around the kitchen island to stand next to her as she opened her laptop again.

“Yeah, I know,” she told him with a wink when he leaned over the island right next to her. “You might be sort of a jerk sometimes, but whenever it comes to food, I know I can trust you.” Mike chuckled at that, watching Kara open her document all over again. This time, on the contrary to what was happening merely minutes ago, the words came so easily to her mind that even she was surprised. She turned to him before she started writing, and with a very impulsive decision she reached forward and squeezed his hand, making sure she only used human strength. The last thing she wanted was to break his fingers, even though she wanted to give him a huge, bear-sized hug. For his advice, of course. From gratitude. Yet she just opted to hold his hand briefly before pulling it back, flashing him a genuine smile. She didn’t miss the way he stared at his hand, even after she pulled hers back, for longer than what would considered normal, before looking at her. The smile on his face had disappeared as Kara continued, yet she tried to ignore that, as well as the way her heart stuttered in her chest.

“But in any case, thank you for being supportive,” she said, looking at his eyes. “I…I might’ve needed that.” A small smile pulled Mike’s lips at that as he shrugged, as if it wasn’t a big deal—which was so not the case for Kara.

“I’m just being honest,” he said nonchalantly. Kara waited him to pull back as he stared at her eyes, yet he didn’t. He just stood there, his eyes flickering to her lips, and…and she would be lying if she said she wasn’t staring at his lips either. Or if she claimed her heart hadn’t just started slamming against her ribs. Or she found herself grabbing the sides of the kitchen counter, gripping it almost tightly enough to create dents, as she leaned forward. She could see—she could _feel—_ Mike leaning down too, his hand moving closer to hers as he inched forward. She could hear a part of her mind warning her, a logical part telling her that Mike was human, that she couldn’t kiss him, that she’d just end up hurting him—especially now that it was extremely hard for her to get herself together and focus on controlling herself. Another part was telling him that she was _Supergirl,_ she had two jobs, and didn’t have time to be with _anyone,_ especially not someone that didn’t understand why she would disappear so often, even sometimes in the middle of dates—and yeah, that had happened before. But she couldn’t think any of that. All she could think was Mike, how close he was, how beautiful his eyes looked so up close, and how she wanted so, so, so much to ki—

She was so distracted that she literally jumped in her seat when her phone rang, immediately pulling back. But of course, she’d forgotten that she was sitting on a tall stool, and, well… Tall stools and pulling back harshly didn’t really mix well. She almost fell to the ground, on her butt, before she managed to regain her balance on her feet.

When she finally looked up, she saw that Mike looked as flustered as she had. She could feel her heart literally _thundering_ , about to beat right out of her chest, and her cheeks were burning so much that she was pretty sure she’d turned beet red. So much so that it took her a couple of moments to _truly_ pull herself together before she realized that her phone buzzed. Her phone buzzed…just as she was about to kiss Mike. She’d almost kissed Mike.

_Oh, Rao._

She immediately grabbed her phone as she avoided Mike’s gaze, trying so hard not to think about what happened. Yet it was really, really hard as her heartbeats were ringing in her ears. Still she blinked and forced herself to focus, especially when she saw the messages were from Alex. About an alien attack in downtown National City, where Supergirl was needed. ASAP.

She really needed to pull herself together.

She lifted her head to look at Mike, racking her brain to come up with an excuse to leave. He had his phone in his hand too, looking at it with his brows knitted, yet he looked up the moment she turned to him as if…as if he’d felt her looking at him.

No! No, there was no feeling. No connection. Nothing whatsoever. Nope. What just happened… It didn’t mean anything. _It didn’t mean anything._

Maybe if Kara repeated it enough times she’d start believing it too.

“Um…” she started, hating how hoarse her voice sounded. Mike lifted his head at that, looking at her with wide eyes, his cheeks tinted red too. Kara adjusted her glasses to get a grip on herself, and lifted her phone in the air. “That was, uh, that was my sister,” she announced with a nervous laughter, stepping back and almost tripping when she crashed into a stool. She cursed inwardly as she gripped the kitchen island to steady herself, looking up at Mike, expecting him to laugh at her clumsiness. Yet he just stared at her with parted lips, something that made Kara’s heart flip—she ignored that too as she continued. “She needs me for…something. Says it’s an emergency. I better…” She cleared her throat as she gripped the front door’s handle. “I better go.”

Mike nodded one second later, a nervous laughter escaping his lips as he pushed his glasses up his nose. He waved his hand in the air as if it wasn’t a big deal. “Yeah. Of course, yeah. Go do…whatever…this emergency is. I’ll be, uh, right here, baking my…cookies. Yeah. That’s what I’ll do.” He spun around, strutting into the kitchen. “I’ll be _right_ here.”

Kara barely nodded, not even managing a smile at his awkwardness, before she spun around, opened the door, and left the house. Yet still, it took her a lot longer than that to calm her heart.

* * *

Kara’s heart was still thundering in her chest as she landed on the street, her cape rippling behind her. She’d tried, _desperately,_ to focus as she changed into her suit; she’d tried to push away the memories of…of Mike leaning close to her, of fire coursing through her veins as she stared up at him, of their almost kiss…

_Almost!_ It was an _almost_ kiss, not a…not a real one. Their lips hadn’t touched. They’d gotten close—like really, really close—almost an inch, but they hadn’t kissed. That was the important part. It hadn’t happened, and it…it couldn’t happen again. It was a mistake, a _big_ mistake. There were a whole lot of reasons why she shouldn’t have even attempted it: Mike was human, so that made him very, very vulnerable to her super strength. One slip in control, one wrong move, one too tight grip and she might hurt him. In addition… She was working double time. With her reporting job at CatCo in the morning and being Supergirl, she barely had time to do anything else. If they dated, she’d have to bail on him more often than not, they’d have to spend very little time together, and she would always have to come up with excuses when she had to go Supergirl-ing. It might work initially, but Mike would get suspicious in time, he’d ask too many questions, he’d think she was cheating on him or something, and eventually the relationship would fall apart. Of course, she could tell him that she was Supergirl, they’d come to a point that she trusted him enough for that, but there was one reason she did _not_ want that: She didn’t want him involved in all of this…crazy alien stuff. He deserved a normal life without his girlfriend being a superhero and an alien. And that…

Kara couldn’t give him that.

So no, she couldn’t kiss him, not because she didn’t want to, but…it would never work. And why bother with a relationship that you knew would fall apart at the end, risk getting too attached and then getting heartbroken? It might hurt not to be able to be with him, but being with him and then losing him would be far worse.

At least that was what she tried to convince herself as she focused on the street in front of her, and the alien that was currently shooting some sort of… _laser beam_ …to a car. Kara saw two young girls trying to get away from the car and immediately rushed there, shielding the girls from the rubble. She then pushed them away from the street.

“Get out of here right now!” she yelled before she whirled around to face the alien.

At the exact same time, one of the alien’s green laser beams hit her. She expected her body to be able to handle it—it wasn’t like this was the first time she was hit by a beam of light—but instead she was thrust back, hitting the building behind her as pain exploded on her chest. She gasped for air as she fell down, clutching her suit.

_Kryptonite_. Of course. That must’ve been what the alien hit her with, especially since she was feeling all too vulnerable.

“Supergirl,” the alien chuckled as he walked up to her. Kara lifted herself off of the pavement, trying to ignore the screaming of her arms, and stood up. “And here I thought when you would be showing up.” The alien stopped right in front of her, just a couple of feet between them, and Kara saw a green stone over his chest. Which must be the kryptonite.

She saw the stone starting to shine, presumably to shoot another beam, yet before she could even move she saw a blur of red and blue hit the alien, sending him flying into the air. In his place…

“Valor,” Kara couldn’t help gasping, relief washing over her at the sight of her superhero partner. “You came.” Valor turned from the alien to her then, concern shining in his grey eyes. He stepped towards Kara and grabbed her elbow, looking over her quickly.

“You okay?” he asked, looking into her eyes. Kara immediately nodded, seeing his concerned expression, and squeezed his arm reassuringly to show that she was fine.

Supergirl and Valor had been partners in this superheroing thing for almost a year now. Well, kind of at least, Kara could say. They didn’t know each other’s identities, or who each other worked for, but whenever there was an armed robbery, hostage situation, alien attack, or any sort of event that required their intervention both of them got there. And in time… In time they’d gotten used to it and struck up a loose partnership. Sometimes, Kara wished she could tell Valor who she was and who she worked for (the DEO), and a part of her was still curious about _his_ identity, yet she understood why neither of them wanted to talk about it. Identities could be trippy, especially in their business: It could put them, and their loved ones, in danger if anyone ever found out. So not talking about human identities was a deal she and Valor struck up early on. They trusted each other in the superheroing business, but that was it: Other than that, both of them could live whatever life they chose to live.

Sometimes Kara wished things didn’t have to be so complex and secretive, yet that was the life she chose when she took up the mantle of Supergirl.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” she reassured Valor as she turned around, looking at the alien that had now stood up. “But he has kryptonite,” she hissed between her teeth. Valor’s jaw clenched as he nodded, his gaze skimming over the street.

“No civilians around?”

“No, all of them got away.” Kara let him take the lead as he stepped forward, knowing that he wouldn’t get affected by kryptonite with his Daxamite genes and all.

“Good. Stay behind me,” he told her as he rushed to the alien before giving him a chance to recover. Yet the alien still managed to block his punch and sent him to the ground.

“Valor!” Kara yelled as she started to rush forward, but then stopped herself when she saw the alien turn to her. His kryptonite was glowing over his chest. She quickly jumped behind a car, letting it take the kryptonite blast, before she grabbed it from the bottom and flung it over, right at the direction of the alien.

The guy just stopped the car as if it was nothing but a fly.

This time Kara rushed to the alien, kryptonite be damned, and landed a punch on his face. Pain hissed on her knuckles at that, her powers weakening by the second.

Maybe that was not a good idea after all.

“Feeling weak, sweetheart?” the alien asked as he pushed her to the ground. She couldn’t even keep her balance as she fell down, her heart stuttering in her chest. The alien stood over her. “Not that it will matter in a couple of seconds.” The stone started shining again, and Kara tried to regain her strength and get away from it, but it was almost impossible. She couldn’t even push herself off the ground as she watched the alien close in.

Before he could do anything, though, Valor lunged on him, grabbing him by the waist and flying him away from Kara. Her strength returned slowly as she straightened up to watch the fight…

Only to see the alien break Valor’s wrist, as if it was nothing, and then his scream filled the air. “No!” Kara tried to scream, tried to push herself up, but her arms felt too weak from the kryptonite. She could still see green veins pulsating under her skin as she watched Valor fall on his knees, at least until the alien grabbed him by the neck and lifted him up in the air.

“Lead skeleton,” he said, lifting his hand… And Kara saw that a part of his skin was burned, revealing a metal looking skeleton. “You like it?” he asked right before…

A scream left Kara’s lips all over again when she watched the alien dig his fingers to Valor’s neck, and with her supervision she saw blood pooling around there. Valor trashed for a couple of seconds more, probably trying to regain his strength, but with lead… It would be impossible. He couldn’t do it.

And sure enough, his body went limp almost too soon after that, even as the alien pulled back his fingers. Kara could barely hear the van approaching the alien as she stood up, her focus on Valor, who was now slumped over the alien’s chest with the alien’s arms around his chest. “No,” she whispered again as she tried to lurch forward, but all she did was trip over a piece of rubble and fall back on the ground. Her powers were yet to return, and with the kryptonite on the alien’s chest anyway she was sure they’d be completely depleted if she tried to get close.

The van stopped behind the alien, the doors opening. The alien smiled at that as he looked over at Kara. “We’ll deal with you later, Supergirl,” he hissed as he carried Valor inside the van. “Until then, CADMUS says hi.” And with that…

With that he shut the door behind himself and Valor, and the van left, before Kara could even lift a finger.


	2. Rescue

Kara clutched her pillow tightly in her arms as she rested her back on the arm of the couch, staring absentmindedly at the TV. The news was on, and even though a night had passed since she and…and Valor fought that… _man—_ Kara doubted he was an alien now that she knew he was CADMUS—they were still showing the footage of the fight, taken from some security camera around the area. Right now it was paused though, right at the part the man lifted Valor into the air from his neck. And there Kara was, a couple of feet away from them on the ground, just…just watching the scene with horrified eyes. Well, she couldn’t actually see her eyes from the footage’s viewpoint, but she remembered the absolutely dreaded feeling she’d had then, and knew she must’ve looked horrified.

Yet that didn’t help her one bit when the man dragged Valor into that van and took him away. All that fear, all those powers and strength… It didn’t help her as Valor, her superhero partner, the person who’d had her back more times than she could count, was taken away by CADMUS, a.k.a. the anti-alien organization that had hurt more aliens than Kara could count. And now, because of her, Valor was in their hand. Because she couldn’t protect him— _save_ him—he was in their hands.

And he’d saved _her_ when that man was about blast her with that kryptonite stone.

She shut her eyes again as guilt washed over her, burying her face to the pillow.

After the fight… After the fight Kara had immediately rushed to the DEO, telling them what happened—well, rambling about it until Alex understood what it was. Since then they’d been trying to find a way— _any_ way—to locate him, save him. Yet all of that yielded to nothing, until time approached 2 a.m., and Alex forced her to go home and rest, have some sleep. As if sleeping was possible. As if she could stop thinking about Valor, and what might CADMUS do to him. As if she could stop wondering whether she’d be able to save him before Cadmus… _killed_ him.

No. _No,_ Kara refused to think that. He wouldn’t die. He was… He was Valor! He was a superpowered alien. He knew how to fight, how to protect himself, and most of all he never gave up. He would fight CADMUS with _everything_ that he had before he let them hill him.

But what if it wouldn’t be enough?

She clutched the pillow more tightly to shut out those thoughts as tears streamed down her face, so much so that it tore in the middle. Her fingers dug into the cotton that now came out and spread on her lap and black leggings, some even falling to the floor. Yet she didn’t even have the strength to stand up and tidy it, even though she knew she had to before Mike came home. He probably would ask what happened to the pillow or how it happened, especially once he saw that she was crying—because that was just who he was—yet she was already sneaking out too much with all the Supergirl business, and one day he was bound to get suspicious. But she didn’t have the strength to even lift herself off of the couch, let alone clean up the cottons or sew the tear on the pillow.

Talking about that… Where _was_ Mike anyway? He hadn’t called her yesterday, as she now remembered, even though she hadn’t come home till 2 a.m. Usually he at least called to check she was okay, if she didn’t let him know that she’d be out late. But she hadn’t heard from him. And not only that, he wasn’t home when she came back. She found the cookies he was baking on the kitchen counter, and the dishes were still in the sink—which was weird since he always made sure to do them before he went to sleep—yet he was nowhere to be found. She’d assumed, as she downed three of his absolutely delicious cookies, that there must’ve been an emergency that required him to leave at once, and decided to let it go then since it was too late and the day had already drained her out. Yet now that she thought about it… Wouldn’t he let her know that something had come up?

She reached for her phone, ready to call him, but then stopped. Why would he call her anyway? It wasn’t like… It wasn’t like they were dating or something, right? They were just roommates, friends. And yes, it would probably be kind of him to let her know something came up, but he didn’t have to. Maybe… Maybe he thought it wouldn’t take this long and decided to not worry her. Maybe it was something personal that he didn’t want anyone to find out. Maybe his phone didn’t have a connection. Honestly, Mike had been so nice to her ever since he’d moved in that she wouldn’t blame him if he forgot to call her this time… _whatever_ had happened. He’d always been there for her whenever she needed it. She’d lost count of the things he cooked for him just because she wanted them, the times he wrapped a blanket around her shoulders and gave her ice cream when she was sad, the days he’d called in sick from work to be with her through whatever heartbreak she’d endured, the nights he slept by her side because she couldn’t sleep and she just _needed_ someone, the nightmares he’d hugged her through without complaining even when she knew she was hugging him a bit too tightly… He’d always been with her through _everything._ He deserved a day off from that, he deserved more than anything to have a day off.

Yet… Yet she found herself wishing that he was here. So that he could hug her, just like he always did. So that he could wipe her tears away and tell her that he was there for her, without questions, no matter what had happened. Most of the times he didn’t even _ask_ what happened when she cried, he just brought her whatever sweet she was craving then, hugged her, and let her cry, and if she needed to talk about what happened he’d listen to her without any interruptions or accusations. Even Alex sometimes failed to provide the support he offered. And now…now she wanted that support.

She knew there was a bunch of people that would come to her house, without questions or excuses, if she called them right now. Alex would be there. J’onn. Even James would leave his work at CatCo if she needed that. She could hug them, tell them how she completely _failed_ her superhero partner and got him kidnapped, how she couldn’t protect him, and they’d listen. They’d offer some comforting words or advice, they’d stay with her through her sobs, and they wouldn’t leave until they were sure she was okay. And yet… Yet she found himself wanting Mike there. Not others, _him._ It didn’t make sense, logically at least. She couldn’t tell Mike what had happened; he didn’t know she was Supergirl. She’d have to lie to him if he asked. He couldn’t offer any true advice or comfort, simply because he didn’t know the situation, even if he comforted her. And yet…still…he was the one that she wished was here right now. He was the one that she would call if she thought she wanted someone with her. He was the one she’d choose to hug and cry with, against all logic.

He was the one that she _needed_ by her side. She couldn’t even deny it anymore. She’d done it for so long, telling herself that she simply couldn’t be with a human, and ignored all that she was feeling for him, but now…now she couldn’t do it. She needed him. She needed _him_ with her, she needed him to wrap his arms around her and hug her tightly, she needed him to cuddle with her, she needed him to stroke her hair, kiss her forehead, and tell her that he was with her and everything would be okay, even if it was a lie. She… She just needed him with her.

The moment that thought seeped into her brain, she found herself stand up before she could even properly think about it. The ripped open pillow and blanket fell over on the couch as she grabbed her phone with shaky hands, opening it to call Mike before she lost her courage. She didn’t even care how desperate or weak that was. She might’ve been Supergirl, yes, the strongest woman on the planet, but that didn’t mean she didn’t need someone every now and then. And right now…

She brought the phone to her ear, biting down on her lip, as she waited for the phone to ring. Yet her shoulders slumped when it immediately went to voicemail. She closed her eyes when she heard the beep, trying to keep herself from sobbing, before she finally managed to open her mouth.

“Hey, Mike?” she started, not even caring how much her voice shook. “So, um, I know you must be busy with…something right now, but…but I just…” She stopped for a second, taking a deep breath to pull herself together before she continued. “It’s just… Everything is kind of…horrible right now.” She turned around, facing the TV, her eyes filling with tears all over again when she saw the man lift Valor up as she was unable to do anything about it. “I just… I messed everything up. I let my…friend down, I failed to…to protect him, and now he’s… Now he’s hurt because of me, and I don’t know what to do about it. I should’ve been strong, but I couldn’t, I’m Su—“ She stopped herself at the last second before she revealed her identity, and instead took a shaky breath, closing her eyes. Still, she felt a tear escape them. “I was supposed to be strong, but I…I failed. I failed everyone, and I…I can’t do a damn thing right, and…” She stopped when she heard the telltale beep that indicated that the voice mail was over. She tore the phone from her ear, stared at it for a couple of seconds, before calling Mike again. The phone went straight to voicemail as it had the first time, but this time…this time she couldn’t find anything to say. All she could do was cover her mouth as a sob escaped from her lips, and she plopped down on the couch, not caring about how weak she sounded.

“I—I need you, Mike,” she whispered, hoping her words were intelligible. “Can you… Can you come home, please? I need you.” The phone slipped from her hand with that and fell to the floor before she even had the chance to end the call. She closed her eyes as she shuddered, tears flowing down her cheeks no matter how much she tried to keep herself together. In a matter of minutes her cheeks and hands become so wet that it was unbelievable all of them were her tears. She’d only stood up then when she realized continuously wiping her tears with her hands wasn’t working and she needed to get actual tissues. She staggered to the kitchen, reaching for the paper towels…before she came to a stop. Her sobs dissipated so quickly that even she was surprised as she stared at the little black device on the counter. She knew what it was all too well.

Mike’s phone. It was _here_.

Kara’s heart had started slamming against her ribs as she took the phone, trying to open it. _No battery._ She’d almost chuckled at that, knowing how Mike always forgot to charge it and complained when the battery died. Yet the chuckle died on her lips as the situation hit him.

Mike’s phone was at home when he was nowhere to be found. And she knew that, despite forgetting to charge his phone, he never, ever forgot it at home.

Kara could feel the fear coursing through her body as she grabbed his charger and plugged the phone, keeping it on her lap as she sat on the edge of the couch. She didn’t want to think about what might’ve happened to him yesterday after she left. She didn’t want to think that…that he might be hurt, or _worse,_ and she wasn’t here, because she was out searching for another friend that she’d failed. She wouldn’t be able to handle losing Mike too. She couldn’t handle failing him too.

It took the phone quite some time to open. During that time Kara didn’t even move from her spot, just staring at it as silent tears continuously slid down her cheeks and fell to her lap. And the moment she saw the phone’s screen light up… She opened it. She didn’t even think about whether it was the right thing to do or not, she didn’t think about _anything_ other than the need to check if Mike was okay. How she could do that through a phone was another question, but maybe…maybe there was some text, some call to indicate where he was. Something to tell her that he was fine and keep her from completely breaking apart.

Her shoulders sagged with relief when she realized there was no passcode. Granted, it was a stupid thing to do on Mike’s part, but she didn’t even care at that point. She quickly opened his texts, clicking on the name that was on top. One… _Winnie the Pooh?_

She frowned before shaking off her confusion, thinking it must be some sort of nickname, before she started looking through the texts.

And the moment she read the last ones, her heart plummeted in her chest. She read them over and over again, waiting, praying for them to change, and yet…yet they were still there. They didn’t change. She wasn’t… She wasn’t hallucinating, or having a nightmare. This—the phone, the texts—was very real.

_Heeeeey, how’s my fave superhero?_

_So, hope you’re not busy, ‘cause there’s an alien attack in downtown National City._

_You need to get your Valor ass up there like, right now. It doesn’t look good._

And then…after _Winnie’s_ texts there was… There was Mike’s short reply.

**I’m on it.**

She lifted her head from the phone, staring absentmindedly at the wall for a couple of seconds as her brain pieced everything together. As she remembered all of these…these seemingly unrelated events that she never paid attention to before. How he always seemed to get calls whenever Supergirl was called in too. How he didn’t seem to be bothered by it when her control slipped and she used a bit too much strength. How sometimes, after she and Valor had a rough fight, Mike seemed extremely tired and messy too. How… How it seemed like he hadn’t come home ever since…

Ever since the fight with that CADMUS man on the street.

Because he hadn’t come home. He couldn’t come home. He was taken away by CADMUS after she failed to protect him. Because… Because he was Valor. Mike Matthews, her roommate, the person she always thought was nothing more than a human was _Valor_.

* * *

Kara must’ve landed on the DEO’s terrace with a loud thump, because the moment her feet connected with the floor and she lifted her head, she saw Alex walk up the stairs to come to her.

“Alex,” she gasped as she stumbled forward, trying—and failing—to keep her hands from shaking. Fortunately her sister grabbed her arms before her knees gave out and held her up, anxious eyes searching her face.

“Kara?” Kara could hear worry tinting her voice as Alex looked at her. She gulped as she pulled back from her sister’s arms, not even looking back to see if she was following her as she rushed down the stairs.

“Alex, I need your help,” she continued, wishing she didn’t sound as vulnerable as she did. Alex’s footsteps followed her down into the control center.

“Hey, Kara, wait,” she called out, grabbing the Kryptonian’s arm to stop her. Kara spun around to face Alex, her breathing labored, the words flowing out of her mouth before her intention.

“We need to save Valor, Alex,” she said, grabbing Alex’s arm all over again. “We need to—“

“Hey,” Alex interrupted her, putting a hand on her shoulder. “Calm down first, Kara. Calm down and—“ Kara pushed away Alex’s hand at that, pulling back.

“I can’t calm down!” she almost yelled, shaking her head. She knew deep down that she shouldn’t be yelling at her sister, that Alex had _nothing_ to do with this situation, but she was…she was freaking out, and frustrated, and so, so afraid that she just… She couldn’t help herself. Valor… _Mike…_ She needed to save him. She needed to save her roommate and her superhero partner. Who… Who just happened to be the same person.

In any other situation she would be laughing her ass off at the coincidence, asking what the chance of that was, but now…with Mike in CADMUS’s hands…she couldn’t think anything else but getting to him before he was… She couldn’t even say the word, but even the idea of it was enough to terrify her. She couldn’t lose Mike. She couldn’t lose Valor. Especially… Especially not at the same time.

“Don’t ask me to calm down, Alex, not when Valor is in CADMUS’s hands! We need to _save_ him,” she said, trying to keep her voice steady as the words left her mouth at an incredible speed. She wasn’t even sure if Alex understood any of that. “We need to save him before—“

“We _will_ ,” Alex cut in again, grasping Kara’s shoulders. The Kryptonian could barely feel her grip, yet she still stopped, facing her sister, knowing her fear was all too clear on her face. Somehow Alex’s touch hadn’t felt reassuring at all, and it wasn’t just because she couldn’t feel it. It was more than that. She thought back to all those times where Mike touched her, whether it was their shoulders brushing, a fist-bump, hand holding, or a hug. She was holding back then, _of course_ she was holding back, not knowing that…that Mike was an alien and he could handle it. Not knowing her strength wouldn’t hurt him at all. All that time she thought he was human… All that time she stayed away from him just for that reason… She could’ve been with him. She could’ve hugged him, held his hand, and…and _kissed_ him without worrying about hurting him, without worrying about what she might do to him. All this time she’d been trying to control herself around him… He could handle it. And… And it wasn’t only that either. He was also Valor. _He was Valor,_ her superhero partner, which meant that…that he _knew_ how demanding being a superhero could be. He probably was familiar with cutting something short to go and stop a fire, or having to bail on…on a _date_ because there was an armed robbery, or having to come up with excuses to your friends as to why you suddenly disappeared sometimes. He would not only be familiar with all of those, but he’d _understand_. If… If she ever went out on a date with him and she had to leave suddenly because of an emergency he’d understand, and he wouldn’t hold it against her or question her. Not only that, he’d probably be right there with her, stopping whatever was threatening National City that night, and if she knew him he’d also joke about how it had been “one hell of a date”, literally and figuratively.

She could’ve had it all with him. She could’ve had the relationship that she’d wanted. A relationship in which she could just be herself. Without control. Without holding back. Without secrets, lies, or excuses. She could’ve had it…if Mike wasn’t captured by CADMUS. And now…now there was a chance he’d be… _gone…_ before they even got to try that. And that was an option Kara didn’t even want to consider.

“We will save him,” Alex reassured her, taking her out of her thoughts. “But Kara, we need time, and as I’ve said, I’ll call you if we find something.” Kara shook her head at that, wiggling out of Alex’s arms to walk to the control center.

“No, I have to be here,” she countered, her steps slowing down right in front of the huge screen. There was a map there, still, a map they were using to try and track Valor’s location. _Mike’s_ location. “I have to help.”

“Kara, there’s nothing you can—“

“Don’t say that,” Kara hissed, cutting Alex’s words, but the woman just ignored him and continued.

“Do right now,” she finished her words, standing next to Kara. “Look, we’re trying our best—“

“I know that, but Alex—“

“And we’ll inform you as soon as we find something—“

“It isn’t about that—“

“But you need to go home and rest right now, okay? You need to—“

“I can’t!” Kara yelled finally, her voice shaking. She closed her eyes to pull herself together, taking deep breaths before she continued. “I can’t go back home right now. I can’t be there.” Not when every single thing in that house reminded him of Mike, of Valor, and how she’d failed him. She needed to do something to save him, something other than sitting around and waiting for someone else to do something. She was Supergirl. She couldn’t… She couldn’t just do nothing, not when her partner and roommate was in danger.

“Kara…” Alex started, but Kara didn’t let him get far.

“It’s Mike, Alex,” she whispered, her shoulders slumping. She pressed her lips together as she felt tears threaten her eyes, and she glanced at her sister. “Mike is Valor. My roommate is…Valor.” She wiped a tear sliding down her cheek and shook her head. “This isn’t just about my superhero partner anymore. This is… This is my friend, Alex. This is the man that I…” She stopped before she got ahead of herself, yet the words still filled her mind even though they didn’t leave her mouth. _This is the man that I wanted to be with for months, but couldn’t admit._ Yet Alex seemed to understand her thoughts perfectly. At the end, Kara wasn’t the only one that cared about Mike, Alex knew him and liked him too.

She didn’t even ask how Kara found out Mike was Valor before she hugged the Kryptonian, rubbing her back softly. “I’m so sorry, Kara,” she whispered as Kara just shut her eyes, trying to keep her tears at bay. It wouldn’t help anyone if she just broke apart right now. “And we will find him. I promise, we will—“ She’d just pulled back, holding Kara’s shoulder, when someone interrupted her words. Kara vaguely recognized the blond guy as he looked at them. He was from the IT department.

“Sorry to interrupt Agent Danvers…Supergirl…but this is urgent,” he said professionally, lifting the tablet in his hand. Alex frowned as she pulled back, gesturing the guy to continue. And the next words that left her mouth… Kara was sure she could’ve embraced him in a literally bone-crushing hug, had she not been too shocked.

“We have a location on Valor.”

* * *

Mon-El wasn’t sure for how much longer he could stay awake, especially with the Nth metal bars of his cell rendering his powers useless. That wasn’t what made it hard for him to breathe, though. It was the pieces of lead lodged in his shoulder, lead coursing through his veins, causing an excruciating pain and exhaustion to spread all over him. He’d been like this ever since he woke up in this…this hellhole of a cell; so, so tired that it took him quite some time to remember what had happened: He was captured. By that…that alien on the street, the one that had kryptonite on his chest and lead as skeleton. He remembered the man standing above Supergirl, ready to blast her with a kryptonite beam, as he lunged on him. He remembered him breaking his wrist—which still felt very much broken despite the yellow sun of earth—and wrapping his hand around his throat, squeezing, squeezing until Mon-El couldn’t breathe. And afterwards… It was all a blur. He didn’t remember much of what happened until he woke up in his cell.

He didn’t have much time left.

The thought seeped into his mind slowly, yet he wasn’t even surprised by it. The lead in him… It was slowly poisoning him, and soon enough the poison would’ve spread too much for anyone to save him. He’d die in this cell, alone and forgotten, and his body… It’d probably be burned after him. The thought made him flinch a couple of hours ago, yet now, he’d almost welcome it gladly. For the pain to end. He just wanted the pain to end.

Yet still he fought. He refused to give up, he refused to fall asleep. He fought to stay awake as hardly as he could, even as he felt himself losing the battle. A part of him… A part of him refused to die, especially not so soon, when there was so many things left on earth that he wanted to do. He’d never gotten the chance to see Europe, for example. He’d never been to Disney World. He hadn’t tried every single cuisine. He hadn’t finished the Harry Potter series—he was on the fifth book—and he really, really wanted to know the end of it, as well as the Game of Thrones show.

He hadn’t gotten the chance to kiss Kara.

The thought made his stomach coil as he shut his eyes, trying to ignore the emotional pain that was now weighing on him as well as the physical one. He hadn’t kissed Kara…and he wanted to. He’d wanted to kiss her for so long; he’d wanted to hug her, cuddle with her, have sex with her, do everything that all the couples on earth did with her, and if he died… He’d never get to do any of them. He’d denied his feelings for her for so long, telling himself that he couldn’t be with a human, he could hurt them, and besides, he was way too busy to have a relationship, especially if that person didn’t know he was Valor. Yet now… Now all of those felt like distant excuses that he used to ignore his feelings for this…this amazing, beautiful, quirky, clumsy, kind, and generous woman. Even those weren’t enough to describe her, though. He could continue all day, and there still wouldn’t be enough adjectives to describe what kind of a person Kara Danvers was. He didn’t even know if any adjective could truly describe her.

He knew one thing, though. He very much _“liked”_ liked Kara, despite his attempts at forgetting her. He liked her, he cared about her, and yet…he never got to tell her that. She didn’t know—she never knew—and now…now he wished he said it. Just confessed it. Common sense, logic, responsibilities be damned. They could’ve made it work. They could’ve tried, at least. But now… They wouldn’t even get the chance to try.

Tears filled his eyes as regret churned in his stomach, and he had to open his eyes to prevent himself from falling unconscious. There was a good possibility that he wouldn’t be able to wake up again if he fell asleep. Either way, he wasn’t taking any chances. He’d stay awake until he couldn’t anymore, he’d stay awake, hoping that maybe someone would come and get him. Supergirl had seen him get kidnapped, and he hoped they were close enough for her to look for him at least. And… And there was also Winn, his partner behind the computer, who must’ve been looking for him. Winn would never let him die if he could do something about it. He was the one that designed the bulletproof suit after all. He just… He just had to hold on until one of them came.

Yet with every passing second his resolve weakened, and he could feel himself losing the battle to sleep. Everything around him seemed like a blur, with darkness creeping around the edges of his vision. He didn’t have much time left, if there was any time left at all. So much so that he couldn’t help wondering, with every blink of his eyes, whether it was the last one or not. That was why it really wasn’t that surprising he barely heard the blast coming from right outside the room, which caused the door to be ripped off of its hinges and fly to the opposite wall. He didn’t even have the energy to look up how it’d happened, so focused on trying to stay awake.

That was when he felt someone open the door to his cell, rushing to his side almost immediately. “Mike!” he heard someone scream through his haziness, and then suddenly there was a hand on his cheek, turning his head. He blinked several times, trying to get rid of the blurriness of his vision, wanting to see who’d come for her, yet all he saw was… All he saw was the very familiar blond curls and comet-like blue eyes hovering above him. The woman stroked his cheek again, calling his name, asking him to stay with her, yet all he could do was stare at her eyes.

“Kara?” he whispered so hoarsely that he was sure she couldn’t hear it. Not that… Not that, he thought afterwards, she could. She probably wasn’t even here, and this was just…just a figment of his imagination. A hallucination that his mind provided for him before he…before he died. Yet at that moment, as he watched Kara nod, as he felt her arms around his shoulders and legs, he realized he didn’t care. Hallucination, dream, imagination, whatever it was he didn’t care. She was with him. In one way or another, she was with him, and that was all… That was all that mattered.

His eyes fluttered shut as he felt himself being lifted into the air. _You’re gonna be okay,_ he heard someone whisper. Kara. _I’m gonna get you out of here._ All he could do was nod briefly before he fell to the claws of sleep, and snuggle up to Kara’s chest, embracing the warmth and sense of safety that came from her arms.


	3. Revelation

Kara didn’t know how for how long she had been sitting by Mike’s side, holding his hand in hers with their fingers laced together, watching him sleep and listening to his heartbeat. It was steady now, finally, after hours of speeding up and slowing down erratically as the DEO scientists operated on him. She’d stayed right outside the med bay through it all, pacing back and forth, listening to the doctors, to the heart monitor, making sure he was still breathing and alive, that the operation was going well. She was scared, so, _so_ scared that she’d been too late, especially after…after she found him inside that CADMUS building, sprawled on the floor as if…as if he was already dead. If it hadn’t been for his heartbeat, no matter how weak it was, she would’ve freaked out. But he’d been alive as she opened his cell and ran next to him, hauling him up to her chest to carry him to the DEO as quickly as possible.

It still broke her heart when she thought how he called her name, as if he was dreaming, and snuggled up to her as she carried him. She hadn’t had a doubt in her head that he must’ve truly thought he would die. But as long as she was around, she would never let anything like that happen.

Especially now that she knew he was _also_ her roommate Mike.

She wasn’t angry that he didn’t tell him that. It wasn’t like she could blame him for that when she hadn’t told him she was Supergirl either. If she knew Mike, and despite the Valor secret she felt like she did, she knew he would have a damn good reason for it. Maybe… Maybe he’d been thinking the same things she’d been thinking. Maybe he didn’t want to put the burden of all of that superheroing craziness on Kara’s shoulders, thinking she was only a human. Maybe he didn’t want her involved. Maybe… Maybe he thought it would be easier to stay away from her if she didn’t know his secret, because that would also mean he couldn’t have a relationship with her with that big of a secret hanging between them. Now that… Now that Kara knew he was an alien, she could admit that she liked him, and one reason she’d been too adamant on keeping Supergirl a secret from him was to make it easier to ignore her feelings. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust him—because she did, wholeheartedly—it was that she was worried she would run out of excuses to not be with him if she revealed that she was Supergirl to him.

Granted, the whole ordeal sounded utterly ridiculous to her right now, but she blamed her feelings for that. People had the tendency of acting really stupidly when they liked someone, and she wasn’t immune to that despite being an alien.

She adjusted her glasses to shake off her thoughts as she focused her gaze on Mike’s face. She’d decided, after she was sure that Mike had survived the operation and he’d live, that it would be better if she changed into her Kara Danvers clothes. Supergirl and Valor might’ve been close as superhero partners, but when it came to a personal connection… They didn’t have that. Kara and Mike, on the other hand… They weren’t just roommates. They were friends, _best_ friends almost, and maybe…maybe even more. Kara could never put a name on their relationship, and before today she never really knew why. But, as she realized now, she couldn’t name it because they always threaded on a line between a romantic relationship and friendship. All those times that Kara did something for Mike, like getting him a plaid shirt out of nowhere just because she thought blue would look really good on him and highlight the color of his eyes, or sleeping in his bed when he had a nightmare with her arms wrapped around him, or preparing a day-long plan on his birthday just because he said he didn’t really have anyone to celebrate it with… Yes, they of course could’ve been things that one friend did the other, but the intentions and thoughts she had while she did all those… They were things two people that were more than just friends would think. And… And all the things Mike did to her that she couldn’t even begin to count? Yeah, they certainly brushed the border of a romantic relationship almost on a daily basis. Now… Now she was just free to admit that to herself. Especially what happened the previous day, before CADMUS captured Mike. The almost kiss. She knew she wasn’t the only one that was leaning towards him, or was completely flustered after they pulled back. That should be proof enough that Mike felt at least something for her too, right?

At least Kara hoped that was true, because she’d been building up her hopes about all the things they would be able to do, now that she knew he was a superpowered alien, the whole time she was sitting by his side…and she really didn’t want them all to crash and burn.

All of her thoughts scattered away the moment her ears caught a slight change in his heart rate, a slight spike. And surely enough, the heart monitor picked it up too. She immediately leaned forward on her stool, looking at his face, as she gripped his hand tightly. It felt almost too good to be able to do that—to hold his hand as tightly as she wanted to without worrying about hurting him. She didn’t even know how much she wanted that until now.

“Mike?” she said as she reached forward with her empty hand, cupping his cheek and stroking his hair, without having to control herself. “Hey, I’m here. I’m here.” Her voice was soft as she lifted his hand and pressed a kiss on his knuckles. “It’s me, it’s Kara, Mike. You’re safe now. You can wake up. You’re with me. You’re safe.” She repeated those words until she saw his eyelids flicker, and her heart stammered in her chest. The ends of her hair was brushing his chest as she leaned over him.

His eyes flickered open a couple of seconds later. Relief washed over Kara almost immediately, so much so that she felt tears threaten her eyes. She quickly blinked them away as she dropped her hand on his shoulder, squeezing it tightly to reassure him she was there for him, and flashed him a huge smile.

“Hey,” she whispered, not being able to speak louder. Mike blinked several times as he looked at her, as if he was having trouble focusing his vision, before his eyes searched her face. A small smile pulled his lips.

“Kara?” he said hoarsely. Kara tried to ignore the rustiness in his voice as she nodded, trying to push back her tears. Still, they blurred her vision for a couple of seconds.

“Yes,” she said to Mike, almost as an answer, making sure the smile on her face didn’t falter. “It’s me, Mike. I’m here.” She couldn’t say anything else as emotions overwhelmed her and instead watched him, to memorize his features, as she gripped his hand tightly. Whether he felt that or not she didn’t know, yet he hadn’t made any attempt to pull his hand back, so she kept holding it. His smile disappeared slowly as his eyes flickered around the room, and he frowned.

“Where am I?” he asked until he almost froze. “Am I dead? Is this…heaven?” He turned to Kara, panic visible in his eyes. “Please tell me I’m not dead.” Kara couldn’t help it as a laugh burst out of her lips at that and shook her head.

“No, no, you’re not,” she reassured him, patting him on the shoulder. “Not on my watch.” Mike cracked up a small smile at that as he rolled his eyes.

“I knew I could always trust you to protect me,” he said as he turned to her, at least before he knitted his brows. “But… But what happened to me anyway? I remember I was on the street, and there was this guy…” His voice trailed off at that as his gaze suddenly snapped up to her, his eyes wide, and he scrambled to sit up on the cot. The blanket over him fell off of his shoulders, revealing his suit.

Kara could almost pinpoint the moment, from the way his whole body froze and his eyes widened so much that they looked like they’d fall off of his face, that he realized he was next to Kara Danvers, his roommate, in his Valor suit. A small smile pulled her lips at how flustered he was as he looked up.

“I…I have… There’s a-a very, _very_ good explanation to this,” he sputtered with a nervous laugh, trying to gather his cape behind him with shaky hands. Kara thought about interrupting him, telling him that she already knew and she was Supergirl, but he looked so… _cute…_ trying to come up with an explanation that she just opted to watch him for a couple of seconds, trying not to feel bad about it. “I was… There’s this—this costume party at work…next week? Yes, next week, and I thought…you know…it might be a good idea to go as Va-Valor. People always said that I looked like him anyway, s-so I thought why not, right?”

“Mike,” Kara said finally with a soft chuckle, feeling bad to enjoy watching him scramble like that, and put a hand over his. “I know you’re him. Valor.” She squeezed his hand reassuringly as Mike searched her face. He swallowed hard as he ran a shaky hand through his hair, and Kara could see that he had considerably paled. He glanced at her through his lashes.

“I… Kara, I’m really sorry,” he said, his voice tinted with guilt and shame as he ducked his chin. “I wanted… I wanted to tell you so many times. You have no idea. But I…” He struggled as he tried to pull his thoughts together in coherent sentences. “I know it’s not a valid excuse, but…but I just couldn’t find the right time. And the more I didn’t say it…” His voice trailed off as he huffed, staring at somewhere on the floor. Kara ducked her chin to catch his gaze.

“It’s okay, Mike,” she said as she squeezed his head again. He looked up at him at that, fear twinkling in his eyes.

“It is?” he asked, almost fearfully, his gaze searching her face. Kara smiled and nodded.

“Yeah. I understand why you didn’t tell me. You don’t have to apologize for it. Besides…” She took a deep breath at that as she tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. “You aren’t the only one that kept a big secret.” Mike arched his brows at that, confusion filling his face. Kara could feel him watching her as she reached for her glasses and took them off before reaching for her shirt, unbuttoning it with superspeed to reveal her Supergirl suit underneath.

Mike sucked in a sharp breath the moment he saw the “S”, the glyph of House of El, on her chest, his eyes snapping up at her. “Supergirl,” he whispered, seemingly not being able to talk louder, as Kara smiled and laughed.

“Yeah,” was all she said before Mike continued, blinking several times, as if he couldn’t believe his eyes.

“But… I thought you were… How…?” he sputtered, and Kara couldn’t help chuckling. She shrugged nonchalantly, yet amusement was twinkling in her eyes as she looked at Mike.

“Well, I was as surprised as you were when I found out my very much human roommate Mike Matthews was Valor.” She buttoned her shirt again at that, yet kept her glasses in her hands as she looked at Mike. “But it seems we were both wrong, right?” Mike’s eyes flickered from her eyes to her lips at that briefly before he looked up again, a smile splitting his lips.

“Yeah,” he whispered before clearing his throat. “But… But my real name is Mon-El, not Mike Matthews. That’s just my human name. I mean… I mean, if you wanted to know. You can still call me Mike if you want, but—“

“Mon-El,” Kara said to cut his babble, flashing him a smile before she straightened up, extending her hand to his. “Well, Mon-El, I’m Kara Zor-El. And it’s very nice to meet you.” Joy and happiness flickered inside Mike’s—Mon-El’s—eyes at that as he shook her hand.

“Nice to meet you too, Kara Zor-El,” he said almost jokingly before his voice turned serious, and he looked around the med bay again. “But…the secret identities aside, would you mind if I ask where I am? And… And how did you even find out that I was Valor?” Kara’s smile faltered as the memory caused her stomach to twist, but she cleared her throat and forced the words out.

“You’re at the DEO, Department of Extranormal Operations. I work with them as Supergirl. We… Well, we protect humans and aliens alike from any _extranormal_ threats you could say, I guess? But...yeah. That’s that.” She cleared her throat before she continued, avoiding Mon-El’s gaze as she looked at her hands. “And… And I found out that you were Valor from your phone. You’d left it at the house, and when I got there and realized your phone was there… I got so worried. I thought… I thought something had happened to you. I thought I’d failed to protect you too after I failed to protect Valor. So I…I checked your phone to see if you were in danger or something.” She chuckled at that, but there was nothing humorous about it. She could feel the tears threatening her eyes. “I know it doesn’t really make sense right now if you think about it, but I…I wasn’t really thinking clearly.” _I was crying, desperate, feeling like I messed everything up, and I needed you._ Kara wondered whether Mon-El could read those words from her eyes as she looked up.

“Hey,” he whispered a couple of seconds later as he cupped her cheek, his gaze fixed on her. “It wasn’t your fault, Kara. You did everything you could out there against that…that man. He had kryptonite.”

“And a lead skeleton,” Kara countered, remembering what the man said to Mon-El right after breaking his wrist. “And yet you jumped on him as if…as if it was nothing.” Mon-El just laughed at that as he shrugged.

“Granted, I didn’t know he had a lead skeleton before jumping on him. I wouldn’t have done that if I knew.” The corners of Kara’s lips tipped up at that as she leaned her head on his hand, savoring its warmth and sense of safety. She opened her eyes that she hadn’t even realized she closed.

“You saved my life,” she said, her voice thick with emotions. “He was going to blast me with that…that kryptonite thingy, and you got in between. Thank you.” Mon-El shrugged again at that, nonchalantly, as if it was no big deal, when even the thought of it made Kara’s heart shatter.

“Well, you saved my life too. You got me out of CADMUS. I think we can call it even.” He dropped his hand on Kara’s shoulder and squeezed it reassuringly, his grey eyes shining. Kara found herself nodding at that as her gaze held his for a second before it flickered to his lips, and this time, as she leaned forward, she had no doubt or hesitation in her mind, especially when she saw Mon-El closing his eyes and leaning in too.

At least right before someone clearing her throat interrupted them.

Kara scrambled back at that, when there was only an inch left between their lips, to look at the door, only to see Alex there. She had her hands clasped in front of her as she looked at Mon-El and Kara, a huge, mischievous smile on her face. Kara glared at her at that, and with the frustration of getting interrupted _yet again,_ but there was nothing she could do now as Mon-El pulled back too and looked at Alex. She could see that his cheeks were tinted red, and that slightly lowered her anger for her sister as she couldn’t help thinking how cute he looked like that, so flustered.

“Sorry to interrupt,” Alex said as she looked at them, yet it didn’t seem like she was sorry at all. Kara noted in her head to talk to her sister about appropriate times to interrupt someone as Alex turned to Mon-El. “Glad to see you woke up, Mike.”

“Alex?” he said as he gaped at her, his eyes widening with surprise. “You… You work here too?” Alex nodded almost too proudly.

“Yep. But that’s a story for another time.” She looked at Kara, her eyes twinkling with…amusement? Oh, Alex was certainly gonna have more than just a speech. “ _Winnie’s_ here. Should I send him in?” she asked. Kara almost sighed when Alex used Winn’s nickname that Mon-El had for him on his phone. They’d called Winn after Mon-El came out of the operation, telling him what had happened and giving him the DEO’s address. And to make the call they needed to open Mon-El’s phone and get the number…

Needless to say, Alex had burst into a fit of laughter when she saw the name _Winnie the Pooh,_ and taken up calling Winn that no matter how many times Kara insisted it wouldn’t be appropriate, since they didn’t even know Winn.

“Yeah, send him in,” Kara finally said with exasperation. Alex flashed her a smile at that, and winked at her when she saw Mon-El wasn’t looking at her, before she left. All Kara could do was glare after her.

“Kara?” Mon-El’s voice distracted her from her thoughts as she turned to him. “Who’s _Winnie_?” Kara couldn’t help rolling her eyes.

“That’s…Winn. Your partner. We called him and told him about your situation after we saved you.” She pursed her lips as she guiltily looked at Mon-El. “Alex saw the name you put on his number on your phone, and…she might’ve liked it a bit too much.” Mon-El lifted his brows at that as a chuckle left his lips. He scratched his cheek as he cleared his throat.

“Don’t tell Winn about that,” he almost begged. “He’d kill me if he knew. He hates Winnie—which was why I put down Winnie the Pooh on his number in the first place, but still…” A laugh bubbled up Kara’s chest at that as she shook her head.

“Oh my God,” she breathed, “I’m almost afraid to ask what you named _me_.” At that Mon-El turned her eyes away, a blush creeping up his cheeks.

“Well…” She stopped and narrowed her eyes.

“Wait… _What_ exactly did you name me?”

“Uh…” Mon-El started, glancing up at her briefly. “Caramel?” Kara’s brows shot up at that as he tried to explain. “I just named you Kara at first, but then…but then I learned that your favorite cookies were caramel cookies, since you made me bake them almost weekly, and you were…sweet and…cute and adorable, like caramel. I thought… I thought it would be fitting.” Kara opened her mouth at first but nothing came out, until she couldn’t help laughing. She shook her head.

“Incredible,” she said and threw her arms up. Mon-El sent her an apologetic look that did not look apologetic at all, especially with amusement twinkling in his eyes.

“Come on,” he said, bumping his fist to her arm. “You can’t tell me you don’t love it.” Kara pressed her lips together to stop herself from laughing as she jutted out her chin, but that was really hard to do when Mon-El bumped her arm again. “I can see it in your eyes.”

“Fine, okay!” she finally gave up, shaking her head. “You are insufferable, you know that, right?” Mon-El just shrugged as he put his hand on hers, which had been resting on the cot, and squeezed it.

“I know,” he admitted, “but you still like me.” Something like fear or hesitation flickered in his eyes at the choice of words, but Kara just smiled at that, feeling her heart flutter in her chest, and nodded. And as she squeezed his hand back without controlling herself, as she laughed at him without a secret weighing them down… She thought she could really get used to this. And for once, that thought didn’t scare her; instead, it felt almost _exhilarating._

* * *

Kara tightened her grip around Mon-El’s waist as she pushed open the door to their apartment, keeping it open with her empty arm to help him in. Despite the yellow sun he hadn’t completely healed… _yet_ …but both of them decided it might’ve been better for him if Kara looked after him at home. A place familiar would definitely be much better than the cold walls of the DEO.

Yet still, Kara wondered whether it was such a bright idea every time he saw him grimace or grunt with pain, no matter how many times he’d tried to keep it down. And he _had_ tried to keep it down so hard, just for her sake.

“Come here,” she told him as she pulled him in, putting her foot to the door’s way. “Just a little bit more. Just— _Oh my God!”_ She immediately whirled her head around when she heard a thump, followed by a muffled grunt, only to see that she’d accidentally hit Mon-El’s shoulder, the shoulder where the lead particles were lodged in just a couple of hours ago, to the wall next to the door. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry,” Kara scrambled as she tried to pull Mon-El close to herself, away from the side of the door, yet she obviously underestimated her strength because they both crashed into the door behind Kara and almost fell down, which probably would be really, really bad for him.

She finally managed to balance both of them without causing even more trouble or breaking anything…after Mon-El grunted at least two more times. She tightened her grip around his waist as she shut her eyes and grimaced.

“I’m so sorry,” she said again and shook her head. She glanced at him through his lashes. “I’m… I’m making a total mess out of this, right?” Mon-El chuckled almost heartily at that, despite the obvious pain he was in, and shook his head.

“You’re doing great,” he said hoarsely as Kara finally managed to carry him inside and pushed the door close behind them. “Don’t worry about it.” She shot him an unamused look at that, rolling her eyes.

“Yeah, right,” she scoffed. “Thanks for trying to make me feel good, but I think I crashed you into at least ten different places walking here.” Her eyes flickered to Mon-El’s bedroom. “Bedroom?” He nodded at that, leaning most of his weight to Kara as she walked him there, luckily without crashing into anything else. She let him lean on the wall for a couple of seconds as she quickly pushed the blanket away and propped up the pillows. She returned to him then and helped him get on the bed.

She could almost see his shoulders slumping with relief the moment his back hit the pillows. He closed his eyes and relaxed, letting go of his iron grip on his left side, and tried to flash a smile to Kara. “Thanks.”

“Yeah, you’re welcome, but I don’t think I really deserve that thanks,” Kara said as she reached forward, trying to adjust the pillows, making sure he was as comfortable as possible. “But anyway, is this okay? Are you… Are you comfortable?” Her gaze searched his face as he nodded.

“Yeah. I—”

“Do you need anything else?” she asked then, her hand resting on his uninjured shoulder, gripping it tightly, as if to reassure herself that he was there. “Water? Food?”

“Kara—“ Mon-El tried to interrupt but she ignored him, her mind getting ahead of herself and already making decisions.

“You know what, I’m gonna get you some food. Yeah. You probably haven’t eaten anything since yesterday. And… And of course water! I know you can handle a bit of dehydration with the yellow sun and all…at least I can so I’m assuming you can too…but it’ll help the—the injuries to heal faster, and—“

“Kara.” Mon-El’s voice stopped Kara’s babble as he reached forward and put a hand on her arm. Amusement was flickering in his eyes as he looked at her. “You shouldn’t bother—“ He stopped when she narrowed her eyes and glared at him, and finally gave up with a sigh. “Fine, okay. Food and water sound great. Though, are you sure you wanna cook?” Kara arched her brow and snorted.

“No, of course not. I really don’t want to deal with a house fire on top of everything else.” A genuine laugh escaped Mon-El’s lips at that, a laugh that made Kara’s heart flutter, as she continued. “I’ll order takeout. How does Chinese food sound?” He nodded at that without a hesitation, his eyes never leaving hers.

“Sounds great.” Kara flashed him a smile at that and rubbed his shoulder before she straightened up, making her way to the kitchen to get her phone. “Don’t forget to get potstickers!” he called from behind her. She rolled her eyes at that again, yet even then she couldn’t help chuckling.

“You only say that because they’re my favorite food,” she yelled back as she grabbed her phone. She could hear Mon-El’s laugh echoing in his ears at that, and she was pretty sure there was a huge smile plastered on her face as well as she ordered the food.

She returned back to Mon-El’s room, with a huge glass of water in her hand, a couple of minutes later. She saw that he’d scooted to the side on his bed, leaving a huge space on his left with another pillow propped up on the back of the bed. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw that, and she was pretty sure Mon-El could see the way she was eyeing the empty spot as he grabbed the water. He patted his hand there.

“Come here.” And before Kara could even decide whether it was a good idea or not he’d grabbed her wrist and was tugging her close, right onto the bed. She had no choice to sit there next to him with her back to the pillow.

“Are you sure about this?” she couldn’t help asking as air got hitched into her throat. Mon-El arched his brow. “I mean… I mean, not that I’m _complaining_ , but shouldn’t you have…I don’t know…as much space as you can get? I shouldn’t be taking up…”

“Kara, you’re not taking up space,” Mon-El reassured her, shifting closer, so much so that their shoulders were brushing. Kara doubted she was even breathing as she watched him reach down and take his hand in hers, lacing their fingers together. She could feel his grip on her hand, which was indication enough that yes, she hadn’t dreamed the whole thing, and her roommate really was Valor, _Mon-El_ , another superpowered alien just like her. “I’m feeling better like this.” A smile pulled the corners of her lips as she gulped and nodded.

“Yeah. Me too,” she admitted, and she couldn’t help feeling almost way too happy about the fact that she could confess it now without worrying about anything. And it seemed like Mon-El was in the same situation, because his brows were knitted as he stared at their hands like he was thinking about something. He lifted his head then, his grey-blue eyes boring into hers.

Kara had always known how beautiful his eyes were even behind glasses, yet now, seeing them without it… They were absolutely breathtaking. She couldn’t breathe as he started talking. “So,” he said slowly, almost too slowly, as he lifted his gaze. Kara’s heart was thundering in her chest, and if her superhearing was any indication Mon-El was not in a very different position. “There was something going on between us before Alex interrupted us with… _Winnie’s_ arrival.” Kara could only nod, not even managing a chuckle with his joke, as she heard him gulp. “And I really, _really_ wanna get back to that.”

“Mon-El…” Kara could only gasp as his hand moved to her cheek, his thumb brushing over his cheekbone. Air left her lungs at that as she felt fire coursing through her veins, not only because Mon-El was touching her, but because she could also _feel_ his touch, and that…that almost felt too good. She could see the hesitation in his eyes as they searched her face, as if he was trying to see whether she truly wanted this or not.

It didn’t take him long to decide.

In a matter of seconds Kara felt him lean down, his lips brushing hers, and she felt her heart rate spike at that. Her eyes fluttered shut as she lifted her hands, moving them over his chest to the nape of the neck and tugging him close, closer, not being able to get enough of him. She shifted on the bed, turning her body towards him to get close, running her hands through his hair. It felt so good, _too good,_ to be able to kiss him like this, without worrying about hurting him, breaking his bones, or controlling herself. She could let go of her control, she could stop holding back and just…just enjoy the moment, which was something she rarely had. And, she realized now, she had _no idea_ how good it felt to be able to kiss someone without constantly trying to check herself, because that…well, that killed the mood really fast. But now, with Mon-El… She could let go.

She only pulled back a couple of seconds when she felt short of breath, yet she only rested her forehead against his, not wanting to get too far away. She was still gripping his shoulder tightly and she could feel his hands on her waist, not letting her get away. “Mon-El…” she tried to whisper, a logical part of her brain reminding her that he was _injured_ and this was probably not a really good idea, but all those thoughts scattered away as Mon-El chased her lips once again.

“Shh,” he whispered as he sucked on her lower lip, earning a moan from her. Kara inadvertently dug her nails to his shirt as she wrapped one arm around his shoulders, parting her lips to kiss him back. She could feel her heart slamming against her ribs, ready to beat right out of her chest, as Mon-El’s hands dropped to her collar, fiddling with the buttons of her shirt. She stopped briefly at that.

“Mon-El,” she said as she put her hands on his chest gently, pulling back to look at his eyes. His lips were parted as his eyes fluttered open, dark and full of desire in a way that made her shutter. Her hair was messy from the way she’d ran her fingers through them several times. She could feel his confusion as he looked at her.

“Is it… Is it too fast?” he asked, his voice almost breathless, yet she could still hear the worry behind them. “If it is we can…we can take it slow. We—“

“No, Rao, no,” she managed to say finally, balling his shirt in her fists as she shook her head. She forced herself to get her thoughts together and cleared her throat. “But I… I don’t think we should be doing that while you’re injured.” Mon-El almost sent her an exasperated look at that before he leaned forward yet again.

“I don’t care,” he muttered under his breath as he managed to steal another small but extremely passionate kiss from her lips, before she pushed him away again, trying to keep herself together and remind the overly enthusiastic part of her brain, which just wanted to rip off Mon-El’s clothes and take him right then and there, injuries be damned, that having sex with Mon-El right now would be really irresponsible of her. Besides… They’d have plenty of time to do that when he was healed, right?

“I do,” she told Mon-El as she lifted her head, her voice hoarse. “You’re injured, Mon-El. This is…” She had to clear her throat to get herself together, avoiding his gaze because it really did not help with her predicament. “We shouldn’t be doing this.” He arched his brow at that, as if he disagreed, which made her shudder all over again. She laughed breathlessly. “I’m serious, I don’t want to get you hurt.” She lifted her head to cup his cheeks, her fingers brushing the ends of her hair, as she looked at his eyes. “We’ll have plenty of time to do it once you’re healed, okay? I promise.”

Mon-El seemed conflicted at first, his eyes still burning with passion, before he sighed exasperatedly. “Fine, okay, you’re right,” he said, grabbing Kara’s wrists gently to take her hands in his. “I hate that you’re right, but you are.” She flashed him a smile at that as he leaned forward, pressing a soft, non-demanding kiss on her lips, a kiss that took her breath away. He lifted his hand as he pulled back, tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear as she found herself leaning her head against his palm. His smile widened at that. “But I’ll hold you to that promise,” he warned her. Kara couldn’t help it as a laugh escaped her lips. She nodded at that.

“I would expect nothing less,” she said as she scooted closer, and let him wrap an arm around her waist to pull her to his chest. She rested her head on his shoulder, feeling his fingers absentmindedly draw circles on the side of her waist, and she felt her eyes flutter shut. She snuggled closer to him, resting one hand on his stomach as her left side flushed with his right, and when she felt his lips on her hair, she couldn’t help thinking…

Yes, she could _definitely_ get used to this.


End file.
